Genshin Impact, I, a mere mortal, cannot accompany you to the very end.

"Young man, there's a war going on here... you shouldn't have stopped here."

Mishima Saimin, rowing, said to Kiyono, "We should go to the other side of the island. There are reinforcements there who will escort the civilians away."

This

The soldier still lives hundreds of years ago. In those hundreds of years, he drifted futilely and stubbornly between the two banks, trying to save more people, trying to save more people... It was with this strong obsession that he became a wandering soul in the filth, forever lingering in the world.

"Mishima".

Qingye Road.

He disembarked from the ship. His physical body had reached its limit for the day, and as he took a step forward, his appearance began to change.

"Actually, you're already dead."

The first thing that changed was his temperament.

The youthful exuberance faded, and the purple hue in his eyes quickly dissipated, settling into a silvery-gray frost color, giving them a heavy and somber appearance.

With long white hair trailing behind him, the man slowly tied up his hair crown, took off his slightly bulky cloak, and picked up his clanging snake-cutting sword. The wind blew his samurai clothes.

That face was familiar; every soldier in the Pillar State Army would never forget it.

Although it looks much more weathered.

Mishima blinked, recognizing Kiyono, and blurted out, "Lord Pillar of the State?"

"Dead...dead?"

Was I originally dead?

Mishima looked at him, then, as if remembering something, he belatedly scratched his head and said with a hint of realization:

"So I'm dead... So that's how it is."

"died."

death.

He heard of his own death and also met with the Pillar of State General.

He had countless things to say and countless things to do, but when he actually saw it, he couldn't say anything. Death is such a sudden and abrupt thing; it takes away the words you want to say in an instant.

He choked up, his shoulders trembled slightly, and finally, he managed to squeeze out the words from deep in his throat:

Are the people still safe?

Faced with his death, he uttered only this one sentence.

"General... did I complete my mission? I didn't desert, did I... did I send all the civilians home?"

“Mishima Saemin.” Kiyono looked at him and said, “You did it. We did it too. Not a single civilian was injured or killed.”

"You did it! That's good, that's good..."

Mishima murmured a sigh, and suddenly, a glint seemed to appear in his eyes.

"Then my wife and children are safe too, that's great, Dad didn't let the kids down. Ha, that's wonderful..."

He laughed, his eyes filled with tears, yet he smiled happily.

"Mishima Satoshi, you are a good man."

Kiyono Tsukasa took out a roll of tobacco from his pocket, lit it, and watched the smoke dissipate.

"A good man should be like this, a man should be like this, he should protect his girl, take up a sword to guard the frontier, and come home to make her a midnight snack - this is my opinion, I think this is the most worthwhile thing to uphold, very cool."

"But I can't go home anymore, and I can't make Fangzi a midnight snack anymore."

Kiyono took a deep drag on his cigarette, his lungs contracted, and he coughed softly.

Me too.

Mishima didn't hear what His Majesty the Pillar of the Nation said clearly. In fact, from the moment he knew he was going to die, he had already begun to gradually fade away.

Or rather, may you rest in peace.

On his deathbed, he asked:

"...What is His Majesty, the Pillar of State, going to do on the island?"

Kiyono extinguished his cigarette, crushed it, and disembarked. Osmanthus's footsteps echoed steadily on the light white snow as he slowly walked into the distance.

"I want to make sure that men who can't come home can come home in the future."

The enormous, dragon-like serpent coiled atop the peak of Bayun Island, its blood-red eyes, half a person's height, staring coldly at him.

They will put an end to centuries of fate.

"So, have I been of any help to the Grand Pillar of State?"

Mishima's voice came from behind.

"You did a great job, soldier."

"Get a good night's sleep. You've been tired for a hundred years. No one can bother you anymore."

Mishima stared blankly at Kiyono's receding figure. He suddenly realized that even the Pillar of the State had grown old and had white hair.

The snow continued to fall. He paused, perhaps understanding what the Pillar of State was about to do, and then Mishima lowered his head.

"The eternal way is vast, and the resounding spirit is eternal."

He said softly.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

This chapter is three thousand words long!

P.S. 1: I recommend a book written by my friend, it's really good! "Me, a blond guy, and they all call me a partner of justice?"

PS2: To reiterate, I have made changes to Orochi's character design, such as postponing his death.

There should be another chapter later.

Volume One: Chapter Fifteen - The Showdown Between Two Old Men

Snow stopped.

[Kiyono Raiyu]

[Remaining lifespan: 215 days]

Kiyono Raimei had no idea how much strength he had left.

It was nearly evening, and large swaths of gloomy clouds stretched across the mountainside, their layers rippling in the sunlight.

The giant serpent coiled atop the cloud-covered mountain, slowly writhing, swallowing clouds and spitting out mist. Its crimson-gold scales clanged against the forest floor, producing a metallic sound.

It is of course dead, merely the lingering remnant of the demon god.

This is the first time it has shown itself in four hundred years—it has been hiding for four hundred years.

But Kiyono is an old man now.

They are all remnants abandoned by the times; this is a duel between old men.

I still have enough energy, I'm not coughing much, I'm not feeling very cold, and my heart is beating fast—that's enough.

This is a feeling I haven't had in a long time. He's been an old man for many years, and today he wants to feel young again.

The Great Serpent, whose deity is named 'Orobas', is an ancient demon god worshipped by the Coral Palace on Haiqi Island.

It once plucked coral from its body and made it into steps to help the people of Yuanxia leave the abyss. Since then, it has become the deity worshipped by the people of Yuanxia Palace.

Four hundred years ago, for reasons unknown, it launched an invasion of Inazuma.

"Mortal, you've grown old."

The giant serpent narrowed its scarlet eyes slightly. It could clearly sense the decaying aura emanating from Kiyono's body. Wear and tear was truly an eternal curse. The last time it saw him, he was as energetic as a young man. Five hundred years had passed, and his temples were now gray.

"I can live for another 200 days."

It was astonishing. Despite being mortal enemies entangled for four hundred years, there was no hostility between them. They spoke as if they were old friends reuniting. Kiyono gazed at the giant serpent:

"We can settle things between us now. God of Yuanxia Palace."

After saying that, they fell into a long, long silence.

The wind howled, blowing away the accumulated snow. The first things to move were the clouds, which were stirred up and spread outward in concentric circles. The serpent's body was so enormous that it raised its head and stretched out its body, causing the surrounding clouds to ripple.

Countless filth was extracted and gathered at the center of Ba Yun Island. The serpent's form became more and more solid and clear, and its divine majesty oppressed the world, so vivid that it seemed to have come alive.

Then, it was suppressed.

The sky darkened instantly, and all that remained in Qingye's eyes were those blood-red eyes.

call....

He exhaled white breath through his teeth, returning to the state he had been in that day. Everything in the world slowed down. Qingye bowed slightly, lowering his body to its lowest point. Between the scabbards, thunder rumbled softly, and lightning snakes coiled around them.

The dust floating in the air and the water droplets rippling in the snow mist paused briefly.

Your lifespan has been reduced by three days.

As the water droplets fell and the dust settled, Qingye's figure had already disappeared from the spot.

The giant snake crashed violently into the cliff. A loud bang echoed through the clear sky, the clouds shattered, the mountain collapsed, and huge rocks and snow were thrown up.

Kiyono stepped on the stone in mid-air, his toes lightly touching the ground. In an instant, thunder roared, and his figure disappeared again, plummeting straight down.

Two bloody streaks appeared clearly in the snake's eyes, then swept across its cheek and continued downwards. Lightning rose from the cracks in the wounds, and Kiyono fell down the snake's back at such a speed that he left a trail of afterimages.

A slender silver lightning bolt pierced through the giant snake's spine and descended, tearing apart all the scales it passed through, and finally, blood gushed out!

In an instant, it covered hundreds of meters.

This is a life-or-death fighting style.

Kiyono rolled down the slope, covered in blood, and crashed heavily onto the snow. He felt as if his internal organs were turned upside down, and a sweet taste rose in his throat as he coughed up blood.

Your lifespan has been reduced by two days.

His body could no longer control the lightning; he could only channel it into the scabbard. As a result, Kiyono's remaining lifespan began to diminish.